Virginia: A very ‘special right’ to ignore the Fourteenth Amendment?

Posted on March 10, 2010 by David

The Loudoun Times-Mirror has an article this morning linking the AG’s letter to university presidents to his anticipated opinion on the authority of our own board to update Loudoun’s Equal Employment Opportunity statement. Once again, it’s necessary to point out that in neither case do the policies prohibit “discrimination against gay, lesbian and transgender” people. They prohibit discrimination against ALL people on the basis of sexual orientation, and sometimes gender identity. For the purpose of political misdirection, it’s important to characters like Messrs. Marshall and Delgaudio that such policies be described as if they only apply to some people, but that’s not the way the law works.

Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli started an uproar on college campuses last week when he said colleges could not ban discrimination against gay, lesbian and transgender students.

Now, Loudoun’s Board of Supervisors likely can expect a similar directive from him regarding the county’s employment policy.

Loudoun supervisors voted Jan. 6 to include homosexual and transgender individuals among the groups protected from discrimination in the county’s employment policy.

Del. Bob Marshall (R-south-central Loudoun) questioned that move, asking Cuccinelli to issue an opinion on the board’s action.

Marshall said the board’s move was illegal—the same statement Cuccinelli recently issued in a letter to the state’s colleges and universities.

The state attorney general’s letter said state institutions cannot include sexual orientation in their nondiscrimination policies without first getting approval from the General Assembly.

The “opinion and advice” offered in the letter is just that – the opinion and advice of one lawyer. Other lawyers have expressed robust disagreement with the AG’s selective interpretation of Virginia law. Furthermore, the letter itself demonstrates a clear propensity for activism. The AG is supposed to issue opinions only in response to requests from individuals who have legal standing, and the request published. No such person has been identified, so what prompted this action? Mr. Cuccinelli’s apparent activism in this case makes any future opinions from him, at least in the area of civil rights, highly suspect.

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“Kudos, Loudoun County Supervisor Eugene Delgaudio”

Posted on March 10, 2010 by David

Indeed, why can’t the other anti-gay, anti-trans public officials on the rampage just say what they mean? For those who missed it the first time, here’s the full news clip used by the Daily Show.

Understandably, folks are disgusted and embarrassed by this – it continues to make Loudoun County, especially Sterling, a laughing-stock. But understand why Eugene does this. He knows full well that he looks like a monster and brings unwanted attention to Sterling. That’s the point. He hopes to deter normal people (defined as those who know it’s wrong to refer to other members of the community as “it”) from moving here. The reason for that should be obvious.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c
Gaywatch – Virginia Edition
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show
Full Episodes		 Political Humor Health Care Reform

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Activist AGs Gone Wild!

Posted on March 8, 2010 by David

It shouldn’t have come as a surprise that our new Attorney General was going to be an unrepentant activist, after stating on the record that he intended to “transform” the office as a “platform for long-term reform.” What did everyone think he meant by that, if not his intent to use the position to advance his public policy goals?

The response to Mr. Cuccinelli’s letter to our public college and university presidents makes it clear that fair-minded Virginians (that would be most of us) have no intention of putting up with this nonsense. I will provide links to other resources and suggestions for actions you can take at the end of this post, but there is one response that I find particularly gratifying. One of the bloggers at Too Conservative, a third-year law student, has schooled Mr. Cuccinelli on the law, and exposed the specifics of his abuse of office in a way that I could not have done. He makes some very compelling points, all the more so because they are coming from a fellow Republican who supported Mr. Cuccinelli’s campaign, and wishes to protect the Republican Party from the damage done by anti-gay ideologues. I also admire his calm and patient demeanor in dispatching the critics who are now turning on him. His analysis is well worth a read.

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Governor McDonnell, end your silence

Posted on March 8, 2010 by David

Here is the text of the letter from Equality Virginia:

March 6, 2010

The Honorable Robert F. McDonnell
Governor of Virginia
P.O. Box 1475
Richmond, VA 23218

Dear Governor McDonnell:

I write to ask you to end your silence, and to act on behalf of all Virginians.

Since taking office in January, you have chosen not to support efforts to amend Virginia law to codify a state “policy” against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. You have explained your inaction and your “no position” on pending legislation saying that you have a “policy” against such discrimination in your office, even though that “policy” does not, and according to the opinion you once issued as Attorney General, cannot apply to all state employees or even to the employees of your own Cabinet members.

Now, a letter, signed on March 4, 2010 by the current Attorney General and sent to the state’s colleges and universities, casts doubt, under your own legal analysis, about whether you can even enforce a “policy” of nondiscrimination within the Office of the Governor. Applying your joint legal theory, the Attorney General states that both an official policy enacted by a university board of visitors and an informal policy implemented by the president of an institution (your corollary) would be equally invalid in the absence of legislative endorsement.

If yours and the Attorney General’s analysis of existing state law is correct (and we strongly question whether it is), this means that you would be acting without legal authority if, as Governor, you sought to enforce your “policy” against discrimination to protect any person in your office from adverse action based on his/her sexual orientation or gender identity. Thus, you cannot argue with any validity that you can, as Governor, protect anyone from discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity without a change in the law.

The good news is that it is not too late for you to exert leadership to change the law, as many Virginians, our academic and business leaders, and the Richmond Times Dispatch and other editorial writers have urged you to do. Under the Constitution of Virginia and the legislative procedural rules, you may send a bill down for consideration at any time before the legislature adjourns sine die on Saturday, March 13, 2010.

Accordingly, Equality Virginia respectfully requests that you write the House of Delegates or the Senate requesting the immediate introduction of either or both of the following:
1) a bill to amend the nondiscrimination policy in Section 2.2-3900 B.1. of the Virginia Human Rights Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity (such legislation would moot the Attorney General’s advice to the colleges); and
2) a bill identical to SB 66 governing nondiscrimination in the state workforce or HB 1116 governing nondiscrimination in state and local employment (such legislation would implement the nondiscrimination policy for public employees, including those in your office and at state universities and colleges).

Failure to take positive action during this legislative session to encourage enactment of a state policy against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity will be seen by the thousands of gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgender Virginians (and the many thousands more Virginians who count themselves among their families and allies) as confirming that your promise of a “Commonwealth of Opportunity” is a hollow one for them.

Repeating that you believe discrimination based on sexual orientation is wrong no longer carries any weight. The Attorney General’s and your legal opinion makes crystal clear you believe (rightly or wrongly) that neither you nor any other state officer has authority to hold anyone accountable when they practice such discrimination.

Actions always speak louder than words. Virginians expect our leaders to lead. Going forward, your actions in this case, not your words, will determine the credibility of your promise of opportunity.

Very truly yours,
/s/
Jon Blair
Chief Executive Officer, Equality Virginia

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Congratulations, DC!

Posted on March 3, 2010 by David

Our word for the day is: Arbitrary.

If you happen to live on the north side of the Potomac River, we join you on this day in celebration of equality, justice and religious freedom. DC couples started lining up outside the courthouse at 6:00 a.m. to submit their applications for marriage licenses. Weddings for all couples can begin taking place on March 9. Here’s some helpful information for anybody planning to head down there. [Photo by Cathy Renna]

“We waited a long time for this. Our family will have the same rights and privileges as any other family,” one of those waiting in the cold rain told the DCist.

In light of Maryland Attorney General Doug Gansler’s February 24 opinion that Maryland law can and should recognize valid same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions, couples residing in Maryland can also expect to have their marriages honored by their home state.

Meanwhile on our side of the river, Virginia moves backwards, without even basic rights in the area of state employment. This is not because the people of Virginia are especially evil or mean-spirited; in fact, polling consistently shows that around 90% of Virginians think that state employees should have job protection on the basis of sexual orientation. This is a matter of basic fairness, and the problem actually seems to be an over-abundance of fair-mindedness among ordinary voters, although it may seem strange to put it that way. Recently, we have seen a large number of people insist that the recently adopted addition of sexual orientation and gender identity to Loudoun’s EEOS “wasn’t necessary” because “there are already nondiscrimination laws at the state level” – and then continue to insist that it must be so even when they are unable to produce evidence of such laws. In other words, they are unable to believe that such common sense law isn’t already part of the Virginia code. I choose to see this disbelief as a marker of decency, although of course the information deficit must be addressed.

I think it’s important to understand that what appears, especially in contrast to our neighboring jurisdictions, to be such a dismal setback is really just a temporary artifact of the recent election. Virginians didn’t vote to take rights away from their neighbors; the issue isn’t even on their radar. The individuals for whom punishing the GLBT community is such a burning issue amount to a tiny and deranged minority who just figured out that they can now win elections by NOT talking about it.

It’s unfortunate that regular people will have to pay the consequences of that choice, as Virginia becomes increasingly marginalized – however, equality remains inevitable. The stark contrast just created between the two sides of the river will only accelerate that process.

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“Discrimination is wrong, and we need to say so,” no exceptions

Posted on March 2, 2010 by David

SB 66, the state employment nondiscrimination bill, is being heard in subcommittee today at 5:00 pm. Please contact the committee members and let them know that there is no excuse – none – for opposing this.

Cosgrove (Chairman), Carrico, Scott, E.T., Gilbert, Anderson, Ward, Carr, Torian

A big thank you to Rick Sincere from the Republican Liberty Caucus for the videos of yesterday’s press conference.

From the Daily Press:

“We believe it is not the place of the government to discriminate on irrelevant characteristics in employment for otherwise law-abiding citizens and taxpayers,” Sincere said.

Had the bill sought to bind private employers the same way, he said, the group would not support it. “But the private sector is way ahead of the government in terms of nondiscrimination policies.”

The legislation assumes additional relevance because of Virginia’s effort to persuade the state’s largest private employer, Northrop-Grumman, to move its corporate offices and 300 lucrative jobs to Virginia. The corporation already owns the enormous Navy shipbuilding facility in Newport News and holds a 10-year, $2.4 billion conversion contract with state government, the largest single-vendor contract ever in Virginia.

Maryland, also competing for the headquarters, sought an advantage by noting McDonnell’s decision to omit protections for gays in his executive anti-discrimination order.

“Here in Maryland, we value our gay and lesbian citizens as part of a diverse population that makes the state strong,” Sen. Richard S. Madaleno Jr. wrote in a Feb. 25 letter to Northrop Grumman CEO Wesley Bush. “Across the Potomac, Virginia is doing the opposite.”

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Unclear on the concept?

Posted on February 26, 2010 by David

UPDATE: I have just learned that the Montgomery showerheads are continuing their disgusting attacks. Like Mr. Delgaudio, they are guilty of something akin to blood libel. Such people will be held accountable by history.

To the left is a handout that I created for members of the Board of Supervisors (click to view full size PDF). These images were provided to accompany my remarks during the February 1 public comment session (kindly delivered by my husband because I was en route to Richmond, but that’s another story). Those remarks are reproduced below.*

The context: If you have been following this issue, you know that two of our local supervisors, Mr. Delgaudio and Ms. Waters, adamantly opposed amending the county’s Equal Employment Opportunity statement to include the prohibition of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, and that one flash point for their opposition is the notion that “men in dresses” (which I assume is their ignorant and defamatory way of referring to transgender women) would suddenly be able to use women’s restrooms. Here is Lori Waters from the January 5 board meeting: “Would it mean men who dress as women [sic] going to ladies’ restrooms? It could. It could! I don’t know.“

As we know from other instances of bigots exploiting the fears of uninformed people, these sorts of campaigns always pretend that transgender men don’t exist. After all, the reality of the actual transgender community tends to undermine their carefully constructed fiction about “men in dresses” threatening the ladies in public washrooms. I asked this question of the bigots making these claims in Montgomery County a few years ago:

Are the perpetrators of these lies themselves so ignorant of transgender issues that they believe their own talking points – or, are they doing this with full knowledge of their deception? I’m sad to say that I think it’s the latter.

In the case of our local characters, I have to say I’m not so sure. Several independent reports from people in the board room that night suggest that Lori Waters didn’t understand that she was looking at pictures of transgender men. According to one of her colleagues, she wrinkled her brow in confusion as she looked through the photos, while murmuring “these are just men.”

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